Playing for 90
Fansided

Three favourites to win the 2017 Golden Boy award

By Benjamin Barkworth

SWANSEA, WALES - SEPTEMBER 10: Renato Sanches of Swansea City arrives prior to the Premier League match between Swansea City and Newcastle United at Liberty Stadium on September 10, 2017 in Swansea, Wales. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
SWANSEA, WALES - SEPTEMBER 10: Renato Sanches of Swansea City arrives prior to the Premier League match between Swansea City and Newcastle United at Liberty Stadium on September 10, 2017 in Swansea, Wales. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 5
Next
Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images.
Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images. /

Other notable mentions

Any attempt to predict the winner of this award has to acknowledge one key fact: it has never been won by a defender or a goalkeeper in the 14 years it has been around.

Therefore, Gianluigi Donnarumma and Benjamin Henrichs deserve a mention. The Italian goalkeeper was the definition of consistency as he played every minute of AC Milan’s league campaign. He was man of the match four times, and had a total of 12 clean sheets. So far this season, he has played in all five of Milan’s league games with one clean sheet as well as their 5-1 win against Austria Vienna in the Europa League group stage.

Henrichs was one of the few bright sparks from Bayer Leverkusen’s disappointing season. This included his performances in the Champions League where he helped Leverkusen get out of the group stage, and even managed to get an assist against Atlético Madrid. He finished the season by winning the Confederations Cup with Germany, but he has struggled this season.

There are a few other attacking stars that deserve a mention due to having stellar seasons. Christian Pulisic had a great season at Borussia Dortmund as he helped the team win the DFB-Pokal. The Westphalians also managed to finish third in the league as well as getting to the Champions League quarter-finals. He has also become the star player in the US national team, which is impressive considering his young age.

Next: Hazard hints at Chelsea exit once again

Other notable mentions are Kasper Dolberg and Marcus Rashford who finished last season against each other in the Europa League final. Rashford’s Manchester United came away victorious, but they both had impressive campaigns as they helped their respective teams progress through that competition as well as contributing domestically.

Stats according to WhoScored.com.

Home/Soccer